The ultimate broker comparison - Matrix quality criteria

You alone have it in your hands!

The trading of leveraged products is very popular. However, it is often not easy to find a suitable provider. While you can rely on the pre-selection of online brokers when trading warrants, it is much more difficult to find the right provider from the large number of supposed specialist service providers when trading contracts for difference and currencies. Together with the intelligence portal Due Diligence Hub, we have developed a matrix that analyzes and evaluates industry representatives based on a quality criteria-based scoring model. In principle, this is a kind of checklist that addresses important questions relating to a business relationship.

The evaluation criteria are user-oriented. One key aspect is consumer protection. Ratings from review portals are less heavily weighted. Quality assurance is rarely carried out here to filter out fake content. There are also often conflicts of interest, as business models are financed by fees. The same applies to industry awards. Here, the impression is often given that there are independent jury criteria that apply equally to all evaluated companies.

Quality features/criteria
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My Broker Ranking
My Broker Ranking
1
The company is run by the owner. You know the names of the shareholders and who determines the fate of the company.
My Broker Ranking
1
The financial services provider is a company or group of companies that originates from Europe. In comparison, in the field of CFD and FX trading, there are many companies that use EU licenses (mostly Malta or Cyprus) to address European customers.
My Broker Ranking
1

The company holds an EU license and is thus subject to EU-wide harmonized regulatory standards

My Broker Ranking
1
Since the Russia/Ukraine conflict, some financial service providers based in Cyprus, for example, have come under particular scrutiny. This is no coincidence, as Cyprus was long regarded as the supervisory regime with the lowest requirements. The 'Golden Passport' created a gold-rush atmosphere in the mid-2000s. On the other hand, Malta was on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force, which deals mainly with money laundering offences, until 2022.
My Broker Ranking
1
The company has a code of conduct that describes the company's rules of conduct. This includes a 'Treat Customer fairly' policy and transparent disclosure of potential conflicts of interest.
My Broker Ranking
1
A not entirely unimportant, but often underestimated topic is the responsible translation of the content of a financial service provider's website. It is easy to tell the difference if native speakers have worked on the translation or at least done the quality assurance, or if everything has been left to the Google Translator. If this is the case, it must be assumed that the customer service is only accessible online and can only communicate with customers from foreign regions in a very rudimentary way. If the basis for communication is missing, this can have a negative effect on problem solving.
My Broker Ranking
1
If the overall appearance of a company is homogeneous and customer-oriented, advertising and marketing slogans will be confirmed by the service. This applies in particular to the group of people who, as direct contact persons, are the first point of contact for new and existing customers of the company. The staff are able to respond competently and unambiguously to the concerns of prospective customers/customers, even in the case of tricky questions. If a company does marketing in a target country, this should be a basic requirement of a customer relationship to be strived for.
My Broker Ranking
1
The commitment of a company operating from abroad in a target market is characterised not least by whether it communicates via which social networks, and if so, which ones. Addressing potential and existing customers in their mother tongue should be a matter of good manners.
My Broker Ranking
1
Suppose a company has a specific target market in mind and addresses potential customers interested in its services. In that case, it should also offer training measures in the customer's language, for example. The topic of further training, in particular, is essential and should therefore be taken seriously.
My Broker Ranking
1
Have you ever had the opportunity to meet your broker's staff in person? For example, at a stock exchange day, a trade fair or a seminar. No? Then the question may arise as to why this is so. Even if it is primarily a matter of digital business models, local presence helps to increase trust. One of the essential foundations, especially in the financial sector.
My Broker Ranking
1

European financial service providers use the EU passport to distribute products and services commercially across borders to interested persons abroad. A notification must be submitted to the supervisory authority responsible for the target market to be allowed to do so. Contacting the respective supervisory authority can determine whether this is the case with your current financial service provider.

My Broker Ranking
1

Trustpilot is a rating portal where users of a service can submit assessments on an independent site. The result is not necessarily an expression of quality and satisfied customers. As a rule, however, it can be assumed that a good overall picture can be derived from the feedback of both positive and negative comments. Important! A few votes have no significance. Evaluation portals also come in for criticism more often because of potential conflicts of interest. So always take a close look at who is commenting on what and how.

My Broker Ranking
1

Due Diligence Hub has developed a special Scoring Modell that enables a quantitative overall assessment of the service spectrum of companies within a peer group on the basis of a large number of objective criteria.  It differs from more 'subjectively' oriented rating portals to an extent that is so far unique in this form.

My Broker Ranking
1
Trading accounts for professional traders often offer in return to less consumer protection conditions that give experienced traders more flexibility. In many cases, there are also personal contacts to best implement the concerns of professional traders.
My Broker Ranking
1
Sharia accounts are trading accounts where no interest payments are charged. Also referred to as Swap-Free, Tadawul, Riba or Halal, trading conditions are granted upon request and are only available to individuals who trade according to the principles of Islamic finance.
My Broker Ranking
1
An essential decision criterion, especially for newcomers to the subject, should be trading accounts with the possibility of trading mini- and micro-, if possible also nano-lots. Via these 'small' contracts you trade fractions, which are also called fractionals.
My Broker Ranking
1
Some providers allow their clients to set the leverage associated with the trade to 1. This means that the margin factor is also 1. This extraordinary constellation makes it possible, for example, to mirror the respective underlying value almost 1:1 via stock CFDs, with the advantage that short sales are also possible without additional leverage.
Total Competition Points
17
ayondo Lab Project

This tool is part of the ayondo Lab and is currently in the beta phase. The further development takes into account feedback from the community. Feel free to check back from time to time and, if you wish, you can send us your suggestions and wishes for improving the information content and usability. If you feel that certain facts play an important role in the selection of a financial service provider that you miss here in terms of content, we would be pleased if you let us know.

You have the possibility to make a preselection via the three options. The presentation of the facts is not always formulated as a question. A 'Yes' can have the meaning of 'applicable' or 'known', a 'No' can have the meaning of 'inapplicable' or 'unknown'.